


a night of festivities

by Voshell



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Male-Female Friendship, New Year's Fluff, One Shot, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-28 04:17:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13263519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Voshell/pseuds/Voshell
Summary: Receiving a scroll from Doma, there's very little in it. However, it seems the lord of Doma would like you to come and visit. What does Hien have in mind this time?





	a night of festivities

**Author's Note:**

> Considering I wanted to stay away from smut for a first fic in this , I tried to not be like 'SMUT'. So, it's a lot of friend ship with fluff in there. 
> 
> Having not writing fan fiction in years, I hope this is a good attempt back into the swing of things.
> 
> Also, I tried to stay in character for Hien as best I could including voice. So, I hope you enjoy!

How long had it been since she stepped onto these shores? The cool, but sweet breeze of the Ruby sea grew faint as the scent of Yanxia, its breadth of trees, flowers, and wildlife roaming along. Only receiving letters of the passing time within the Far East only drew so much of a picture than one could see in the flesh. 

 

Pulling onto her satchel, she removed a scroll that had been received during her last excursion in Gyr Abania while helping out the Ala Mhigans. 

 

Those devilish little moogles popped up right in front of her, her name clear as day on the front of it. At first, whom had sent it confused her as there was some semblance of stability in her life. (Well, minus some treasure hunting, but that was a whole other bag of worms.) But her question was soon answered on the contents of the letter. A certain lord had asked to call her away from her duties for just a few days. 

 

Considering  her track record with Ala Mhigo had gone swimmingly and after that Lakshmi issue had been settled, the Warrior of Light took the liberty to write back that she would come without an entourage of twins behind her back. Only if she could get a few days without them in a panic. 

 

“Namai, Namai, Namai…” The word repeated, as she took the path. Hien wrote in his letter to meet there on the second to last sun of the Sixth Umbral Moon. As her mind muddled over what he had meant, she could see the aura of lights from the lanterns from the distance of her destination. Yes, it had been night when she arrived on the shores here - her timing completely off as the prospect of being halfway around the world escaped her. 

 

Following the path under the clear sky caused no immediate problems for the Warrior of Light as she made her way into the small town. It surely was no castle or the Enclave, which she wondered how that was coming along now. 

 

“Hey! I didn’t expect you here!” She heard a boisterous voice call out to her. And it was… not Lord Hien, but it was Isse followed by his sister, who had tripped over something. He had run back over to her quickly, though both held smiles on their features. 

 

Running towards the two, she held out her hands. “Calm down, no need to get hurt because I’m here. Guess you are that excited I showed up.” She  leaned forward, a tooth grin of her own as she patted his shoulder and rubbed his sister’s head back giving them move space again. 

 

“Well, it has been a while since the Garleans were driven out. And Namai gets busier by the day, a bit overwhelming.” 

 

His shoulders shrugged as he talked about the rice fields and how the village was providing for the people. Listening intently, she was not going to let Isse know that she was only grasping a few of the words that he was saying. Words whipping past, even with the almighty-echo, she deciphering that was a no-go and she stoically nodded with a smile. 

His sister noticed the lack of communication far sooner than the brother. A small tug on his top, the young man looked down to her before her silence and a point to their visitor. “Ah! I got enthralled in what's been happening that I didn’t even ask what brought you to Namai.”

 

Smiling, she handed over the scroll that she was given. It wasn’t like Hien wrote anything of major importance. “Your lord asked if I could come visit, and specified here. Though… why here. Well, you’d need to ask him.” The warrior teased, a hint of playfulness in there. 

 

“Oh, Lord Hien summoned y--- He summoned you directly?” Isse whispered something under his breath before handing back over the scroll. “Well, I would be lying saying he wasn’t here. Though the home he’s taken for the duration of the festival, right, it’s the largest one here.” He shook his head. “Come, I’ll take you to him. Don’t be surprised though...” Moving closer to the city, she followed with the younger sister in tow. 

 

“Surprised about….what exactly?”

 

The rice farmer shrugged with a smile. “You’ll see when you get there.”

 

****

 

“It seems you have lost again, my good sir. But as testament to our game, here have some mochi.” A resounding male called out. “Who’s next?”

 

Sliding open the door slowly, her eyes peaked in as she saw the messy haired Doman in front of her. He sat in front of a game, one with both black and white pieces on a board. Isse chuckled behind her, mentioning she might want to go in before another game started. It was a game of Go, and quick history lesson courtesy of Isse, could last either five minutes to six hours.  

 

Jaw dropping, she clumsily pushed open the door - albeit a bit louder than she hoped. There were a lot of eyes on her. A few people she had caught before the liberation she could tell, and oh, well, there was Yugiri. Poised. Blade slightly out. Her eyes didn’t leave that blade until the shinobi let it fall back into its sheath just as quick as it had come out. 

 

“Uh… sorry.” Awkward, she greeted them with a soft bow. “H-hi…” There was a large laugh outside. Noting the outburst from outside, only a smile graced her features right now. Oh, the embarrassment was making her face ten red shades darker. 

 

Hands on his knees, the lord picked himself up from the ground, bowing back in return. “Ah, good. My friend, you did receive the scroll in time. I was worried.” He held out his hand, happy to show off the Doman peoples. “We were just enjoying few games of Go. Speed ones, mind you. A few lucky ones even managed to beat me.” Hien’s gaze ended on a Lupin in the corner, who was happily munching on some kind of treat and they stared back as if eating the mochi was wrong. Shaking his head, he lifted his hands. “Perhaps I should give you all a break and we can start again, bright and early at dawn.”

 

There was a collective groan in the room towards their lord before they started to mingle amongst themselves. . The Warrior of Light noticed even Yugiri sighing in disbelief at his antics. Hien lowered his head, whispering something to his retainer. The Au Ra appeared wary but gave a curt nod before disappearing without a trace. 

 

Unlike his normal garb, Hien wore a simple hanfu dyed blue and decorated with gold and silver trim. His hair was not tied up like normal and his locks hung down, messy as ever.  A change of pace for sure from a man she knew to be ready for war, but a good one nonetheless. 

 

Approaching her, the Doman lord grinned, large enough to catch the shy hero off guard and start grinning herself. “It’s been a while, Hien.”

 

“Most agreed. Though perhaps it be best to walk and discuss, as they say at the council meetings back at the Enclave.” 

 

Acknowledging the fact they were in a crowded space, she stepped out of his way to let him go first. ”You know the village better than I. Lead the way.”

 

“Hmm…” Leaning forward, the young lord canted his head to the side. “Stop sounding so formal. A close friend should never act as such. You could perhaps say something to the effect of ‘Hien, how are you doing’ or ‘A pleasure. Let’s talk.’” 

 

A pout plastered on her face, she had a word for him. But not in front of everyone. Her hand snatched his before bringing him away from the bright lights and the faces that could ever be watching. 

 

“Little Shun….” Index finger wagging at his face, she breathed heavily before continuing. “Little Shun… you…”

 

Crossing his arms, Hien just watched the threat she was trying to come up with fall flat. “Oh, you must be very angry to use my childhood name. Perhaps if I was dressed better we could’ve had our spar.” He lowered her finger before pivoting on his heel, his fingers warmly gripping hers as he lead her out the building.

 

The lord was quiet as they walked around the village as she took in the sights, the smells, and everything. Her feet and stomach did the leading around as they stopped at one of the stalls that were set up, lanterns illuminating the savory aroma. The stall owner described his treat as ‘jiaozi’, or as Eorzeans would know, a type of dumpling.  Allowing a taste test, she attempted to take a bite before it just fell to the plate, splatting into the sauce beneath it. 

 

To her side, Hien ate his without a care in the world while she could not even get down one. They were only served 3 a person, but she just looked on at him down the second one. Try as she might, the dumpling would keep slipping and evading its wooden grasp. The result? The dumpling got stabbed in the middle. And it stayed put. 

 

“D-did… you just… slam that into your food?” Hien retorted as he munched on his last one. Smiling, he made no other comment.

 

“Well, you know how to use a chopstick. I’m rather bad at it…and I’m hungry. You just come from Eorzea on a half empty stomach.” Her attempt on the second dumpling was failing like the first. 

 

Shaking his head, the lord took his own as held them between his fingers in order to show her. One higher than the other and one in the crook of the thumb. Copying the other, the woman tried again as it just flipped back into the sauce. Several attempts and different chopstick positions later, failure rates grew higher. 

 

One her last attempt, she grabbed for the dumpling before Hien took it away from her with his own. A master of chopsticks. “The poor jiaozi prefers to not be handled so roughly again. Here, open.” Lips pursed, she refused to open her lips until that determined gaze was there. The only other time she’d seen that recently was.. Well, when they flooded the castle. Mouth opened up wide, she closed her eyes before taking a bite. Embarrassed, she just chewed on it as he dipped it into the sauce again until both the second and third found their way to her stomach. Hien chuckled at her expression when they were finished. “See, that’s how you handle your utensils Much better than destroying the food. Keep that for the real enemies.” 

 

“How you can use them is beyond me. But thank you for the food.” 

 

“Compliments to the go to the master of his trade. Not I.” The Doman bowed his head, her following suit, still not accustomed to how things exactly worked here. They both thanked him accordingly. 

 

The older fellow returned the gesture in kind. “Please, I love seeing other enjoy the food I put my love into.” He glanced to Hien first and then her. “Now, enjoy the rest of the festival, my lord, with your lady.”

 

***

 

Their excursion through the festival, Hien tried to keep up with her as she bought several things in quick succession. Her feet were nimble. “So, what exactly is this festival for, Hien?” She questioned. 

 

“Being the last few days of the year, it is customary for us to have one to welcome the new one. It is for prosperity, longevity and the like. Do you celebrate such thing?” Hien asked as he checked the wares on the stall they were currently at. Picking up a ornate and detailed fan for himself, the lord awaited her answer. 

 

“In Eorzea we celebrate it but it’s usually Starlight that’s more important. We exchange gifts, eat merrily, and all that. The new year is just the new year. I guess we just hope it isn’t as bad as the one before.” Cynical, but the truth, she found a tiny dog statue. It looked like those ones that were popular in Shirogane. Slipping some money to the vendor, the warrior of light took it with her. 

 

Hien sighed at her response. “That’s it? Just a normal day for you? But the start of a year should prepare yourself. ” 

 

Did she say something wrong? Holding her tongue for a minute, she had to think carefully to not make it sound like this was overkill. Of course both places had their traditions. “Yes, it is. Perhaps it’s been like that for a while. Not exactly sure why we celebrate certain things to begin with and the like.” She placed her hand on his shoulder. “Though, for being something Doma and I am guessing Hingashi does as well, it’s fun to see what you include at your festivals. Well, except maybe the one food stall with the weird looking meat. Otherwise, it’s been enjoyable so far.” Even if Doma’s was relatively small compared to the latter nation due a rebuild, they still managed to have enough to show off to any other place. 

 

He was quiet again. In that thinking mode. Whenever he became silent from their time before invading the castle, it was always about something. 

 

Beckoning her, he found one more stall that was serving desserts of some sort as their walk seemed to be finishing soon. Lanterns were becoming increasingly dark as they walked further from the center. Hien ordered an order of dango the both of them and a fresh mochi for her. 

As she munched on the rice cake, she looked to Hien before speaking once with her mouth full. “Nrrr arttttin’ rit.” 

 

“Pardon? It seems I do not speak or understand food.” He rubbed the top of her head as she swallowed down her food. 

 

“I said… Not acting right. You’ve been quiet ever since we’ve been going around the festival. I would expect you to be boisterous like when I saw you earlier exclaiming your love for everything here. You’ve been especially low today on what you’ve been doing or where you are.” And another bite of the mochi. 

 

Hien chewed on his dango, a smirk crossing his face. “So, you noticed. I guess I can’t put on a mask in front of a friend without worry. Perhaps I wanted to spend some time without others pushing themselves on me. Day in and out with the council, that’s all it ever seems to be these days. Days I wish I was back on the Steppes with some semblance of freedom.”

 

Her eyes closed slightly as she looked down to her food in thought. “You’ve been feeling like this for a while haven’t you?”

 

The lord paced himself a head of her slightly. “Yes. But now that I am leader of my peoples, what I want and what I need to do are two different things. Perhaps it is times like these I at least feel somewhat liberated from that sense of duty I was taken from for over a year.”

 

In the distance he watched on. Like the day she had met him, overlooking the cliff. Mayhaps he did not always show it, but she knew there was more than just that. He was nervous. Just like when they had taken back Doma for the people. 

 

“Hien…it’s alright.” Swaying on her heels, she glanced towards the sky as lights began to illuminate the sky. “It’s okay to feel like you do. Sometimes, I want to actually just have a place to stay for a long time. An opposite kind of feeling but I know it just the same.”

 

“You truly are magnificent, you know.”

 

Confused, she opened her mouth to question him before the loud blasts from the fireworks started in a symphonic-like way.. “What do you mean, Hi--” She felt his calloused hands against her cheek as she watched him. His expression was soft as they stood there, as flame danced above in spectacular fashion. Her head skipped as he leaned in closer to her. 

 

“We’ll talk about it later.” His answer was brief but sincere. Hien’s soft lips found her forehead as he placed a small kiss. Their gaze never wavered when he pulled back. “By the kami, happy new year. May they watch over you when I can’t.”

**Author's Note:**

> As Yanxia is a mixture of Asian cultures as stated by the developers, I tried using items (not phrases I can’t do justice with lol) from both Japan and China that I was researching. 
> 
> And after playing 4.0, yes I am assuming there is some form of aetheryte travel for the WoL. Considering they have aether up the wazoo, I doubt getting to Doma would be an issue. (With the twins even discussing this being viable for individuals but not massive amounts of supplies, I use that as my proof. xD)


End file.
